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Repaving project upsets residents

Repaving of Orlando Avenue near 98th Street seemed to be complete Jan. 15, but one last hiccup meant the street still has a couple more days of construction.

The construction is part of the installation of pipeline for the Lake Alan Henry Resupply Project, which will bring water from the lake to Lubbock later this year.

Pipeline was laid several feet below the street, tested and then paved over in the last few months.

The pipeline project winds all the way to 82nd Street, where it hits a pumping station, said Wood Franklin, city engineer.

He said 700 feet of asphalt must be repaved because of alligator cracking on the surface. Basically, the final step in the project must be redone to ensure the street is not in poor condition. The Orlando Avenue pipeline construction is part of a $2 million phase, Franklin said, but the subcontractor, Armor Asphalt, Inc., will foot the bill for the repaving.

Franklin said the repaving started Wednesday and should be done Friday, barring any weather delays.

Sherry Craig, who lives on Orlando Avenue, believed the long installation process was done three weeks ago when the initial paving was finished. However, she awoke today to tearing up of the street, which caused her to call the city.

“This water project has been unmerciful toward the taxpayers that live on Orlando,” she said.

Craig said the project inconvenienced she and her neighbors and lasted longer than she was told.

A slew of problems — mostly weather related — slowed down the process and caused Armor Asphalt to miss its deadline, said project manager Matt Riley, declining to give the initial deadline.

He also said people’s running of sprinklers caused problems with part of the process, putting excess water into the caliche base — a material used to layer the street.

Riley said his company took over the project three months ago to mill out room for the pipeline. He said the depth for the trench was between 8 and 10 feet.

Two months ago, after the pipes were installed and tested, Riley said his company came back in to refill the trenches and pave over the pipeline.

The asphalt must be placed during temperatures above 50 degrees, and some of the poor weather seen this winter slowed down the process considerably, Franklin said.

Craig also expressed concern for some of her neighbors, which she characterized as elderly women trapped in their houses.

Greta Cullers, 59, often visits her mother’s house adjacent to the construction.

Although Cullers’ mother is active and has a car, Cullers said her mother would have to walk down the street to get to Cullers’ vehicle when her daughter picked her up.

Wednesday’s construction displeased Cullers when she heard about it from her 86-year-old mother.

“She called me this morning and told me, ‘Don’t come over because you can’t get in my driveway,’ ” Cullers said. “It’s very unacceptable for the city to spend so much money and not get it right.”

The most recent setback was unavoidable, Riley said, and it comes up from time to time. He said this problem is common, especially when paving over a pipeline. He said city inspectors supervised the project and not until recently did it seem like there would be a problem.

Riley said he could not disclose the exact cost of the repaving. He said the construction crews would try to do everything it could to keep residents from being stuck at home.

Although the project does sometimes block driveways, Riley said when notified, his crew would create a ramp for those wishing to leave their homes.

Craig said she was in favor of the project when it started, but she was appalled at how long it took to finish it — especially in front of her home.

Both Riley and Franklin said they have gotten some complaints about the project, but no more than usual.

As soon as the asphalt is laid and one final layer is put on — to protect against weather — all of the trucks will leave the area, Riley said.